Creaking Tree String Quartet. I heard these guys live last spring, and they were mesmerizing. I have the 2007 soundtrack. The CD sounds a lot better than their website, at least on my computer... http://www.creakingtree.com/ Suzanne

My opinion is that America is so reliant on oil because the people in power (government and industry) are making a ton of money on our oil consumption. We consume a lot more oil than we have to because it is marketed to us. Oil is easy. I also believe that if we were cut off from foreign oil, it would take only a short period of time to implement alternative energy sources. The technology is out there, and if we had a reason to use it, we could do it efficiently. Thanks for bringing this up! Suzanne

We got a couple of chickens this year, and just about all of the bug problen in our garden disappeared. We only live on a half-acre lot, but remarkably, the chickens stay in the yard -- no fence. Take care, Suzanne

What about the Year 0 booklist on Ambleside Online? Suzanne

I'm Suzanne, but I didn't send you an email...

We have Free to Air satellite TV. You have to install it and find the satellites yourself. We can pick up several from our home. We get a number of PBS channels, ABC, FOX, and a huge number of other channels -- foreign languages, university and public service broadcasts. The only thing that disappointed me was that we get very little European programming, only a Dutch channel and a Polish channel at present, I believe. I think it cost around $400 or $500 for everything we needed. We actually don't even watch much TV. I think it's just more of a fun project for my husband to do... Take care. Suzanne

I agree -- it's very easy to scan through the online version and pick out the parts you are most interested in. In the Ambleside Online (AO)website, http://www.amblesideonline.org/ , you will be able to find an answer to your question about twaddle, as well as most anything CM. The AO curriculum was designed to be as close to Charlotte Mason's PNEU schools as possible. They also have a link showing the actual materials and schedules used by Charlotte Mason in her schools. It has been fascinating to me -- nothing like what I learned in Ed Psych in college. We just started Ambleside Year 1 this year, and it is going extremely well. I hope it works out for you. Take care, Suzanne

I do medical transcription full time. I spent 9 months on a course first. It works great for us. Suzanne

Thanks for the memory. I just loved that show.

Our dd6 is also a prolific art maker....We have a 3-ring binder for her to make her own "scrap book." If she wants to keep it, she has to punch holes and put it in the binder. If the paperwork ends up on the floor or in a pile somewhere, it usually goes out in the trash. She also has a nature journal in a 3-ring binder for nature drawings and projects, and she really enjoys them both. Take care. Suzanne

Ambleside Online has a poetry anthology in the booklist for Year 1. We enjoy it. Take care, Suzanne

With my dd6, we just read and memorize from the KJV Bible. We also do Rod and Staff for reading, which is all Bible stories. Actually, when I bought the texts this year, she sat down and read through them all. She is now working through them again with the workbooks. She won't let me resell the texts because she loves the stories so much. Take care, Suzanne

I don't know how old your dd is. I had read the NKJV to my dd when she was younger. She had a version with Precious Moments pictures in it that she loved. When she turned 6 this summer, I bought her a KJV Bible. She uses it for copywork as well as at church, and she doesn't seem to have any problem with understanding the language. Take care, Suzanne

Thanks for sharing that. Interesting. I wonder how many Chinese feel the same way. Suzanne

We don't have any video games and don't watch much TV -- dd6 may possibly watch 1 or 2 shows a month. She will use the computer maybe 1/2 hour a week on average, probably more in the winter when the evenings are too dark and cold to be outside. Suzanne

I sometimes use venison. It's not as greasy as beef.

My dd6 loves Ranger Rick and Highlights. I thinks she like Ranger Rick the best. Suzanne

Good quote. Actually reminds me of someone else.... Ron Paul! Take care, Suzanne

I used Romes last week at a dinner, and they worked well. They have really white flesh to begin with. Suzanne

Garlic, which is free and easy to replant. Also rhubarb. I haven't bought either one in years, though, so I don't know if I'm really saving much. We also like acorn and butternut squash. Seems a lot cheaper to buy the seeds than the produce. Suzanne

We do both, too. We are doing Ambleside Online Year 1 with my dd6. I do most of it as a read-aloud. (She loves it, constantly asking to do more.) Some books are a chapter a week, some are a chapter every couple of weeks, but she doesn't seem to have any problem remembering where we are. She is a good reader and is also free to read whatever she wants for an hour or so a day. She is currently into Bobbsey Twin books and EB White books. If I give her the time, she will read at least a whole chapter book every day. She will often reread books several times. Take care, Suzanne

I don't know how old your son is, but you might want to ask why he wants to switch and if he is really serious about learning any instrument -- has he really thought this out? If it seems he has thought it out and is committed to something else, I would like him switch. I started with clarinet in 6th grade. I wanted to switch to brass 2 years later, but my parents wouldn't let me since they had already bought a clarinet. I went on to be an instrumental music major in college and had the opportunity to play a number of brass instruments in different groups. I still like to play in brass ensembles at church when I have the chance, but I haven't touched a clarinet in a number of years. :) Hope everything works out well for your son. Take care. Suzanne

I like to go light. Good hiking shoes, maybe a pocket knife. I only take water or a backpack with stuff if it is going to be all day, not just for a few miles. I don't know where you live, but you should be aware of what type of wild life you may run into. For example, we never hike in the mountains around here in the summer (unless we are with a group of friends), because there are too many rattlesnakes on the rocks. I'm glad you're enjoying the hiking! Take care, Suzanne

What about trade school for a year or two? Even if he doesn't like it, he will have training to get a decent job. He can always go to college a year or two late after he decides what he really wants to do. Suzanne

My dd is only in Year 1. All I do is read the selection, and she tells it back to me as best she can. Sometimes we look the country up on the map or make a notation on our timeline. I read only 1 literature or history selection a day and a poem a day. It's amazing the connections she is making already and how much she talks about the different books. Seems like she is always asking to just read 1 more chapter.... Suzanne